Wednesday, December 27, 2017

Benno Ballooner




Benno Ballooner Men's and Women's 8. Courtesy: Clever Cycles
The Benno Ballooner is available with an 8-speed derailer or internal hub and comes with fenders and disc brakes. Clever Cycles in Portland, Oregon has it for $1,000. You can also find Benno bikes at Conte's in Washington, D.C. and Virginia.

Benno Baenziger co-founded Electra in 1993 (along with Jeano Erforth), which produced cruisers at a time when very few cruisers were available on the market.  In 2014, Electra was bought by Trek.  It's now apparent that Baenziger was not finished designing useful bikes for the rest of us.

The Ballooner, of course, gets its name due to its wide tires (26 x 2.35). Baenziger writes: "Personally, I am not a big fan of skinny tires. I believe that bigger tires provide for a better and more controlled ride."

You can read more about Benno bikes on the Clever Cycles Blog.

Benno offers the Ballooner in both derailer and internal hub versions. Here are the specs for the IGH version:

Frame6061 Aluminum Alloy Frame
ForkCRMO Fork with Investment Cast Lug Crown
Rims/wheelsDouble Wall Aluminum Rims
Tires26”x 2.35” Balloon Tires (60 TPI)
CranksetRetro Aluminum Crankset
Rear derailleurShimano Alfine Internal 8-Speed
BrakesShimano Hydraulic Disc Brakes
PedalsRetro Aluminum